Chapter 30 Part 2

“And if we don’t want your company and want to wander on our own?”

The maidservant smiled. “The City Lord instructed that this place has complex terrain, and she feared the honored guests might get lost. Therefore, if honored guests wish to leave Mid-Lake Island, they will need us to accompany them.”

Isn’t this just house arrest in disguise? Li Jiangying nodded. “I’ll accept the City Lord’s kind intentions for now. There’s no need to go out yet. Oh, right, please send some food to the Star-Picking Tower. Also, get the Star-Picking Tower repaired.”

She waved the maidservant away, then took Li Yueying and Jiang Sujin back to the Star-Picking Tower.

The moment Jiang Sujin saw the Star-Picking Tower, she couldn’t help but show an admiring gaze. She exaggeratedly ran around the upper and lower floors. When she reached the seventh-floor bedchamber and saw the huge hole in the wall, she was dumbfounded. “Wh—what happened here?”

Li Jiangying waved her hand dismissively. “It’s nothing. We sparred a bit with the City Lord and accidentally broke it.”

Jiang Sujin couldn’t help but look at her with admiration. “Sister Ying Suanli, you’re amazing!”

“I’m ashamed to say I didn’t act personally. It was A Yue who did it.”

“Really.” At the mention of A Yue, Jiang Sujin couldn’t help but look curiously at the Snake Demon, who seemed somewhat different from when they met yesterday. She seemed inexplicably much livelier, though just as clingy to Sister Ying Suanli.

“Sister Ying Suanli, I can see my residence from here!” Jiang Sujin excitedly pointed it out to Li Jiangying. It was a small courtyard. Li Jiangying silently memorized its location.

After Jiang Sujin finished touring the Star-Picking Tower and her excitement calmed down somewhat, Li Jiangying pulled her aside and said, “Sujin, how long do you think you should stay here?”

“I don’t know either.” Jiang Sujin said, somewhat helpless. “A minor figure like me, receiving an invitation from the Moon-Chasing Devil Venerable is already a lifetime’s worth of honor. How could I dare casually refuse her good graces?”

“To tell you the truth, A Yue previously…”

“Daoist Ying, Miss Jiang.” The maidservant’s voice suddenly came from downstairs, informing Li Jiangying and the others that they had brought food and repair workers.

Li Jiangying could only pause her conversation with Jiang Sujin. She calmly nodded to the maidservant and unceremoniously instructed them to clean up after repairing the walls and windows.

The three went downstairs to the living room and began dining and enjoying the scenery. They ate exquisite food and looked out at a pleasing, beautiful view. If Zhu Yue wasn’t harboring ill intentions, staying here wouldn’t be so bad.

“Sujin, how do you wash off that kind of color?” While Li Yueying’s attention was focused on how to reconcile her paws with chopsticks, Li Jiangying quietly asked Jiang Sujin.

Jiang Sujin also whispered back, “You need to soak it in strong liquor for a quarter-hour, then scrub it. Then scrub it again with soapberry. This needs to be repeated multiple times before it completely washes off.”

It was quite difficult to wash off. Li Jiangying glanced guiltily at the snake tail.

Once the repair workers finished their task and came downstairs, Li Jiangying asked them to send over a few jugs of strong liquor, some soapberries, a wooden tub, and towels. The maidservants acknowledged the order and all withdrew. For a time, only Li Jiangying and her two companions remained in the small tower.

Li Jiangying quickly said to Jiang Sujin, “To be honest with you, A Yue had some past conflict with the Moon-Chasing Devil Venerable. Because of that, Venerable Zhu Yue was able to recognize A Yue on the street. Now, she’s inviting us as guests on the surface, but her intentions are not good. I’m afraid she’s just looking for a chance to retaliate.”

Jiang Sujin said, shocked, “What can we do? Sister Ying Suanli, let’s run!”

Li Jiangying coughed awkwardly and said, “This old woman is limited by her cultivation method and cannot easily act, or else a thousand years of cultivation will be ruined in an instant! And I fear Zhu Yue’s spies are everywhere around us. If we just run, she’ll probably drop all pretense and act directly, and we won’t be able to match her.”

“What then?” Jiang Sujin scratched her head in distress.

“Don’t be too anxious yet. There’s still A Yue.” Li Jiangying stroked Li Yueying’s head. Li Yueying closed her eyes, tilted sideways, and fell into her embrace, nuzzling like a cat begging for more petting.

Jiang Sujin was both surprised and delighted. “Right! A Yue clashed with Venerable Zhu Yue. She’s so powerful; she’ll definitely lead us away safely!”

Li Jiangying dashed her fantasies. “A Yue is heavily injured. If she really fights Venerable Zhu Yue, I’m afraid she still won’t last too long. What I wanted to tell you is to wait here for a few days. Wait for A Yue to recuperate a bit. When our odds improve, then we’ll leave.”

“No wonder A Yue is so powerful yet can’t fully transform.” Jiang Sujin murmured. “Don’t worry, Sister Ying Suanli. When we get to Flying Swallow Capital, I’ll ask my Master to take a look. My Master is a very powerful physician!”

“Then I’ll thank you in advance.” Li Jiangying asked again, “Can you see the Star-Picking Tower from your courtyard?”

“I should be able to.”

“Good. Then let’s agree on this: when we’re ready to run, I’ll make this signal to you from the window.” Li Jiangying leaned close to Jiang Sujin’s ear and whispered, holding up three fingers in an “OK” sign. “When you see the signal, start preparing. I’ll find a way to create chaos. Watch for the right moment to escape in the confusion. We’ll meet at the reef cliff in the northeast corner of Mid-Lake Island.”

Jiang Sujin secretly memorized the location. “But Sister Ying Suanli, how do you plan to run? The Moon-Chasing Devil Venerable is so powerful. Can you really do it?”

Li Jiangying smiled. “I don’t plan to fight her head-on. It’s a long story. This old woman once visited this place three thousand years ago and happens to remember a secret underwater passage here. A Yue and I will escape through it when the time comes. If we’re lucky, we might not even have to face Venerable Zhu Yue.”

The so-called visit three thousand years ago and finding a secret passage was something she’d actually read in the Flame Devil’s Handbook.

“That would be wonderful!”

Having tentatively set their action plan, Li Jiangying lowered her eyes to look at the little Snake Demon rolling over to show her belly and act cute in her arms. Her heart felt restless for a moment.

What she’d told Jiang Sujin was, of course, the ideal scenario. In reality, there were many uncertainties just from Li Yueying alone.

For example, who knew if the next time she cultivated, she might turn back into the person from last night.

So Li Jiangying added to Jiang Sujin, “Always prepare for the unexpected. If you reach the reef cliff and haven’t seen A Yue or me in half an hour, don’t wait any longer. Find your own way out.”

Although Li Jiangying felt some guilt about dragging Jiang Sujin into being targeted by Zhu Yue, with her limited abilities, this was the most she could do for her.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Sujin sniffled, moved. “Sister Ying Suanli, you’re so amazing; you’ll definitely be fine!”

Li Jiangying didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Whether I’m fine or not aside, there’s no need for you to look at me with the eyes of a martyr so early. Alright, if there’s nothing else, I plan to read for a bit. You?”

Jiang Sujin’s eyes lit up. “The books here might have treasures you can’t find outside. Sister Ying Suanli, can I read too?”

“Of course.”

It was rare to meet someone who also liked reading. Li Jiangying enthusiastically brought Jiang Sujin to the middle three floors, the library. Jiang Sujin beelined for the medical texts, while Li Jiangying, as before, first browsed the travelogues.

Actually, she had already discovered this at the Moon Shadow Devil Palace. The library there had absolutely no books from the last two thousand years. They were all books from two thousand years ago. It was fortunate they were well-preserved enough to still read.

Now outside, Li Jiangying was very curious about what the world was like in recent books. They did not disappoint her; there were indeed quite a few recent ones here.

Li Jiangying was halfway through a book and engrossed when the City Lord Manor maidservants delivered the strong liquor, wooden tub, and other items she’d requested. After they left, Li Jiangying hurriedly poured the liquor into the tub and coaxed Li Yueying to get in and soak.

Li Yueying grabbed her arm, deeply reluctant. “Where is Yingying going?”

The strong smell of alcohol wafted from the wooden tub. Not wanting the sleeping area to suffer, Li Jiangying chose the third-floor music room as the spot for the snake-liquor bath (?). That way, she could read on the fourth floor for a bit before coming down to scrub her.

Li Jiangying patted her head and coaxed, “I’ll be right above you, reading. Be good. Is Yueying not going to listen to me?”

Li Yueying coiled her tail and sat in the tub. The strong liquor just covered the dyed area. She opened her round eyes wide and shook her head obediently. “But I can’t bear to be away from Yingying.”

“Just a little while. I’ll be right back.” Li Jiangying said. “Distance makes the heart grow fonder, a brief parting is sweeter than a wedding. Being away for a bit, I’ll find you more beautiful the more I look at you.”

Li Yueying’s eyes brightened. “Yingying, go quickly!”

“Good child.” Li Jiangying patted the snake’s head approvingly, ran upstairs, reopened her book, and continued reading.

Only, as she read, she became completely absorbed and forgot all about the snake soaking in liquor downstairs…

Thud!

A heavy, muffled sound pulled Li Jiangying out of the world of her book. She paused, then jumped up on the spot. “Oh no!”

Li Jiangying rushed downstairs. As soon as she reached the music room, she saw the wooden tub, full of strong liquor, overturned on the ground. The floor was a lake of pale pink liquid. Sprawled in the puddle was a Snake Demon, occasionally twitching a paw.

The Snake Demon’s shoulders, neck, and face—the parts of her human skin—were all flushed pink. Her soaked hemline led down to a long tail that was pink with black showing through. Her eyes were hazy and drunk. Suddenly, her mouth opened. “Burp!”

Li Jiangying shrieked. “Aaaahhh! A Yue!”

Li Jiangying hurried to the Snake Demon’s side and tried to lift her. But who knew the heavy pressure combined with the slippery floor would conspire against her, causing the fragile mortal’s foot to slip and fall to the ground.

Thud!

Facing straight down, Li Jiangying prostrated herself completely.

A burst of sour numbness shot from the root of her nose to the top of her head, accompanied by the strong stench of alcohol. It successfully made her vision go black and sparks fly.

“I heard Daoist Ying asked for several jugs of strong liquor? What, planning to drown your sorrows?”

As the saying goes, when it rains, it pours. A headache-inducing voice approached from afar, accompanied by footsteps so light they were inaudible. The Moon-Chasing Devil Venerable had come again!